Mommy…what day is today?

Maci has suddenly become very concerned about what day of the week it is.  She often asks…"Mommy, what day is today?"  I will answer and her next question will be:  "Is it shot day?"  6 out of 7 days it's not and she has a little sigh of relief but every once in awhile, it is shot day.  Her little round face falls and her eyes well up with tears.  She then goes on to try and convince us that it isn't shot day.

It breaks my heart just thinking about the conversations we've had.  Maci doesn't understand that the shot allows her to move freely, torment her big sister, jump on the couch and saves her eyes from permanent damage.  To her, it just hurts.

Every Friday night the reminder goes off on our phones and both Ryan and I get a sinking feeling.  Ryan gets the shot ready and I begin to distract Maci.  It never works, she can sense it is coming.  Tears ensue despite Kenna's best effort to distract her.  I eventually hold her arms and legs down…Kenna gets the bandaid ready….Ryan does the injection.  Almost immediately after the needle goes in, the crying stops.  The worst part isn't the pain.  It is the anticipation….for all of us.

There is no reasoning or amount of explanation you can give to a 3 year old.  We've been researching the least traumatizing way to give the shot and I think as the weeks go by it will get easier for all of us.  That's what we hope anyway….